Cotton-press.



lo. 699,935. -Pafentd may I3; A|902...l

. A. n. Tlmlmlxs` COTTON PRESS.

' lo. 699,935. y i l fPatentd my 13.1902, A. n. THOMAS.-

GUTTDN PRESS.

(Application led Sept. 16, 1901.) (No vModel.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 2.

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"Nm 699,935. v Y Patented May'l3. |902'.

' A. D. THOMAS.

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(Application ledept. 16. 1901.) l monden 4 sham-sheet 3.

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l no. 699,935. Q l mama my I3, 902i A.n. moms. COTTON PRESS.

(Application m99y sept. 1e, 1901.)

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To a/ZZ whom, t may concern.:-

YUNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ABNERv D. THOMAS, OF LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS, ASSIGNOR TO THOMAS GINCOMPRESS COMPANY, -A CORPORATION OF ARKANSAS.

offri-oN-Pnrass.

SPEGIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 699,935, dated May 13, 1902. Application led September 1G. Serial No.175,5473. (No model.) i

YBe it known that I, AN'ER D. THOMAS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Little Rock, in the county of Pulaski and State of Arkansas, have invented certain newand useful Improvements in Cotton-Presses, of whichv the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings,form ing a part thereof.

j The invention to be hereinafter described relates to cotton-presses, and more particularly to that type of such presses wherein the cotton is assembled in layers in a baling box or chamber under any desired degree of compression and thereafter transferred to the linishing side of the press for any desired pressure or it may be for final compression into a compact bale forpshipment. j

. It is the usual practice at the present time to bale the cotton at the gin-house in large but loosely-packed bales, which are trans-v ferred to distant points and compressed to the size andA density desired by heavy and powerful compresses; but this method of baling necessitates repeated handling of the cotton, first, in the production of the loose bale at the gin, and, second, in the ship-` ment to the central or distant point for' compression. To obviate these obvious objections, attempts have been made to provide a baling-press that could` assemble thef cotton in layers under more or less compres'- sion as it came from the gin and upon the completion of the bale to transfer lit with as little handling as possible to the finishing side of.' the press, where the bale was subjected to the final compression desired. Invsuch form of presses, however, Where the layers vof cotton, are subjected to more or less .pressure as they are formed into the bale, it is obvious that as the bulk or weight of the bale increases the pressure of the bale -forming means upon ithe'top of the bale decreases and at a ratio proportionate to the increasing weight ofthe bale. vIt is likewise obvious in such form of presses that upon completion of the preliminary bale on the bale-forming portion of the press unless some means are provided to compress or hold the top layers of the cotton below the bale-forming means or head of the press itwill be impossible to successfully move the bale from its forming position to theinishing side of the press, as the elasticity of the compressed layers of cotton will at once cause the bale to spring upward as soon as the pressure is removed, vand by virtue of the lincrease in size the bale cannot thereafter beplaced beneath the head of the press on the finishing side. In laying the layers of cotton during the formation of the preliminary bale the fold of the lap as each layer is [put in is liable to kink on the inner side of the fold, and if the lap is made thick and great pressure exerted on the lap at that point the ber of cotton becomes inj ured.

With the above general defects and objec- 'tions in view Ait is the object of my present invention'to provide a press for the production of square or rectangular bales of cotton as the latter is delivered from the gin, and in which upon the completion of the preliminary bale it may be at once subjected to the necessary compression on the finishing side ofthe press to expel the air and form the iinished bale of great density.

Generally stated, my invention consists of Vthe devices and combination of parts, as will yhereinafter be more fully described, and denitely pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure l is a side'elevation of oneform of press embodying my invention, some of the parts being shown in section. Fig. 2 is a likeview of the press looking in the direction of the arrow, Fig. l. Fig Sis .a perspective view on an enlarged scale, ,showing more particularly the baleforming side of the press, the hopper, its connected parts, and the cut-off being placed in position above the bale. Fig. 4 is a detached detail view showing the cut-olf and one form of means for forcing it down uponthe'layers of cotton composing the bale. Fig. 5 is a detached side view of a' modified form of device for forcing the cut-off upon the top of the bale, and Fig. 6 is a plan view of the parts shown in Fig. 5.

In the present embodiment of my invention I have selected for illustration the type of cotton-press described in my former patent, No. 549,861, wherein two baling boxes or chambers are mounted upon a circular platform or turn-table, so that as the preliminary bale is being formed in one of said boxes or chambers the cotton in the other maybe compressed to the required density of' the finished bale.

Referring to Fig. l, A A' represent anysuitably-shaped baling boxes or chambers mounted upon the turn-table 13, the latter being mounted to turn upon a central vertical shaft B, supported in any desired framework, all as set forth more fully in my former Letters Patent referred to, and which need not, therefore, be herein further described. Located beneath the turn-table B and in position to be directly beneath the baling boxes or chambers A A when the parts are in position, as indicated in Fig. l, are two pressing devices A2 A3, preferably of the hydraulic type, although, as will be apparent, any desired form or character of such devices may be employed, the purpose thereof being to furnish power to hold the layers of cotton under any desired amount of compression while the preliminary bale is being formed in the chamber or box A and simultaneously with the formation of the preliminary bale in the chamber or box A to subject the bale in box A to the finishing compression. Mounted above`the turn-table B at one side thereof and in a position to be reeiprocated over one of the baling boxes or chambers A A to form the preliminary bale is a traveling carriage C, comprising any desirable or suitable framing adapted to support the hopper C', which is open at its top and preferably receives the ginned cotton in afiuffy form direct from the condenser D through any usual or desired form of feeding-chute D. Secured in a suitably rigid manner in proximity to the carriage C and preferably on either side thereof are the tracks or supporting-beams C2, by or through which the traveling carriage C is supported and guided during its reciprocations over the baling box or chamber by means of the rollers c c, mounted on the framing c' c of the carriage above and below said tracks or beams. Secured to the reciprocating carriage C to give reciprocating movement thereto are the rack-bars (J3, which may be given reciprocating movement through any suitable source of gearing, as by the pinions C4, driven alternately first in one direction and then in another from suitable driving power, the reciprocations of the carriage being such that it travels back and forth over the top of the baling box or chamber and for a distance substantially equal to the width of the box or chamber. Within the hopper C are mounted the rolls e202, over which pass the endlessv feed-belts 03, which serve to feed the cotton as itis delivered into the hopper down between the rolls c2 c2. Mounted in the carriage C and below the rolls c2 c2 are the drawing and compressing rolls c3 c, which by means of any suitable gears or inions c4 and ci are driven one from the other i and the pinions c5 being of less diameter or having less teeth than the pinions c4 the drawing and compressing rolls c3 c3 are driven at a faster speed than are the rolls c2 c2, the consequence of which is that as the material being delivered from the gin or condenser into the hopper is formed into a lap between the rolls c2 c2 the drawing and compressing rolls mounted below them serve to draw out the lap, and thereby arrange the fibers of the lap in a more nearly parallel condition, so that as the lap is folded layer upon layer iu the baling box or chamber the fibers of cotton on the inside of the fold are simply bent back upon themselves without being kinked and without liability. to injury upon great compression being brought to bear upon the finished bale. In the illustration of this part of my invention I have shown simply one pair of' drawing and compressing rolls ci; but of course it is evident that the number of these rolls may be increased as desired, and where a very thin bat is desired to be formed into a bale such drawing and compressing rolls may be mutiplied in number to secure the desired quality and bodyin the resulting lap as it passes to the baling box or chamber. Mounted upon the lower portion of the traveling carriage are a series of rolls c, around which pass endless belts E E', the said belts being held stationary by a suitable connection c to a fixed part of the adjacent framework, as shown in Fig. 2. Each of the belts E E referred to carries at a portion of its surface starting-fingers c', which serve as the carriage is reciprocated across the top of the bale to engage the lap upon each change or reciprocation of the carriage, so as to start the lap to fold backward upon itself and be readily fed in another layer upon the bale. It will be noticed in this connection that the lingers c' c are in such position on the belts E E that when the carriage is at one end of its travel, as in Fig. :3, the starting-finger e' on the belt 3 is in position to engage the lap and fold the same, as above specified, while the starting-finger c' on the belt E is in opposite relation on its belt and will assume position between the two belts similar to that as shown in Fig. 2 when the carriage has reached the other end of its travel.

From the construction' so far described it will be seen that as the carriage C is reciprocated back and forth over the top of the bale the usual follower E2 (shown, for instance, in dotted lines in Fig. 1) has laid upon it the layers of the bat which has been fed from the traveling hopper, the said follower being held up to exert suitable pressure upon the layers or folds of cotton between it and the belts E E by means of the pressure device A3, located directly beneath the bale box or chamber, the said pressure in the present embodiment of my invention comprising a hydraulic cylinder in which works the usual piston (not shown) carrying the rod E3, which is adapted to pass into the bale box or chamber beneath the follower E2. It will be evident that in ICO IIO

this condition the pressure upon the upper: layers of cotton in the bale would be less than the pressure upon the remaining portion of the bale, or, in other wo'rds,the bale would not be homogeneous nor of uniform density, for

which reason I have provided devices for causing a differential resistance or pressure to beexerted uponthe bale asV its weight or" bulk increases. The form of suchdevice as I have selected to illustrate as embodying this feature Y comprises a cone-pulley E4, as shown in Fig. 2, mounted upon the shaft E5, which is carried in bearings E6 in proximity to the rod or plunger E?, upon which I have provided a'series of rack-teeth El, which are adapted to be engaged by a suitable gear or pinion E8, mounted upon the shaft E5. A weight NV,- suspen'ded by a flexible connectionW from the cone-pulley E4, is adapted to exerta balancing or upwardpressure Iupon the piston or rod E3, depending upon the radius of the cone-pulley E4' at the particularv point of suspension of the weight. Thus when the follower E2 is having the first layers of cotton laid thereon and the plunger or rod E8 is extended into the bale box or chamber to support the follower and compress the layers of cotton it ,will be evident that the weight of cotton upon the follower will be small, and consequently that the balancing eect for the weight of cottonwilllikewise be small, so that I have disposed parts of the dierentiatin g pressure device so that at this time the weight W will be suspended from the cone-pulley E4,near the smaller diameter thereof, as shown in Fig. 2; but as the weight of cotton increases and the plunger or rod E3 is depressed into the cylinder A3 the conepulley E4 by virtue of the rack and pinion E7 and E8 will be turned to wind up the flexible connection E9, the weight progressively suspended from said pulley toward-its larger diameter, thereby increasing the counterbalancing eect of the weight. While I have described this form of counterbalancing device for the bale, it is evident, of course, that it may be varied in form, and it is not my desire to be limited to the particular form of counterbalancing device described. The preliminary bale havingbeen formed, as above indicated,` by thelayers of cotton being laid and folded backrand forth bythe traveling carriage it is evident that on the completion of the preliminary bale the bale box or chamber will b e practically full Ofcompressed llayers of cotton, the tendency of which will be to expand more or less and to bear with pressure, depending upon the amount of compression given the preliminary bale' bythe pressure device against the beltsy E E', and as it is desirable upon the comple- `one Yof the rolls c2.

tion of the preliminary bale to turn the table and place su chpreliminary bale beneath the iinishin g compression-head P to give the bale its nishing pressure it becomes necessary to provide some means for holding the cotton in the bale box or chamber while vit is'being.

transferred from under the traveling carriage to a position under the finishing compression-I head P, andsuch device I will now proceed to describe.

Referring to Fig. 3 of the drawings, d d designate two handle-bars, pivoted atv d to the frame of the traveling carriage, and preferably, it may be, upon the journal or axis of Extending between the handle-bars d d are the pieces d2 d2, from which depend push-bars d3, the lower ends of which are bifurcated, as at 014 and, as more clearlyshown in Fig. 4, to engage the bars f of the cut-off frame F, the latterpreferably comprising a series of parallel bars f, joined at one endpby the cross-barf' and `having upturned ends f2, for a purposethat will hereinafter appear. The cut-olf frameF isplaced upon the bale below the journals of rolls c6 and is then pressed upon the top of the bale by the handle-bars and push-barsto carry the top layer of cotton sufficiently away from -the belt E to permit movementof the bale Ioov after the hooks -have engaged the bars f of the cut-off they can be 'forcibly lowered by turning the'eccentric g2 by means of the handle g3, though suchv form of constructionlis not essential. In order that the cut-off frame may be inserted between the rollers c6 and lthe top of thebale, thesaid rollers c6 on one side ofthe traveling carriage are grooved, .as at g4, and insteadA of having a single belt extending the full width ofthe rollers c6 a plurality of smaller belts g? are employed, each of awidth corresponding to the distance between the rollers c, as clearlyindicated by Fig. 3. From this construction it4 will be ap. parent that the cut-off frame'can be readily inserted above the bale 'after the same has IIO been completedl by pushing the free'ends]D2 vin the grooves of the rollers c6 below thel axes thereof, the turned-up ends f2 duringsuch lmovement of-thecut-ol F preventing the ,bars from becoming embedded in the cotton. When the cut-off F has thusbeen inserted over thetop of the bale, thepush-bars d3 :are

lowered between the sections g5 of the belt to .bear upon the top ofthe cut-off, as shownin Fig. 4, force being then applied to the handlebars d to ldepress the cutfoif that it l` may be .engaged with the hooks g,.and when soen- A,gaged the cut-off F holds the' cottonaon ltop of the bale from pressingcontact against the `sections ofthe belt E.

From the above descriptionandthe sliow-l l ing made by the drawings it will be obvious that the purpose of the cut-off F is to hold the cotton in the bale box or chamber, so that the layers of cotton will not project upward under their elastic force, but will be held by the cnt-off in their proper relation in the bale box or chamber, so that the said bale box or chamber with its contained preliminary bale of cotton may be removed from under the bale-forming surfaces, such as the belts E E', and transferred by rotation of the turntable to the opposite side of the press for the finishing compression or, it may be, for partial compressions, after which it may be tied and taken from the machine for future compression after the cotton in the preliminary bale has become cured and dried, which might be the case where cotton eitherin the green state or wet had been put up in the preliminary bale, and while I have shown the form of cut-off as consisting of a frame F, as shown in Fig. 4, it is evident, of course, that the construction thereof may be varied between wide limits, its essentials being thatv it shall be susceptible of insertion above the top of the bale and then clamped to the bale-box, while the bale itself remains under the compression exerted by the pressure devices and the bale-forming surface, as E.

The form of devices for forcing the cut-ofi` down upon the top of the bale after its insertion above the bale, as specified, are shown in their preferred constructions in Figs. 3 and 4; but it will be evident that such form lof cut-off depressor is not essential and that any means may be employed which will operate between the sections of the bale forming surface or belt E to force the cut-off upon the top of the bale, and as an illustration of such dierent forms of cut-off depressors I have shown the modification thereof in Figs. 5 and 6, wherein the rolls cG1 comprise several small pulleys mounted on the same shaft, as cw, and around each series of row of such pulleys of a section g5 of the bale-forming surface E passes. Mounted upon the axis of one of the rolls cG1 are a series of camst, fixed to said axis and operable from one side of the machine by means of a handle 7c', fixed to the extended end 7a2 of the shaft c62. It Will be obvious upon reference to Figs. 5 and 6 that the cut-off frame F, having been inserted above the bale between the top thereof and the journals of the rolls cG1 with the cams 79 in the position indicated in Fig. 5, that upon turning the said cams by means of the handle 7s the cut-off frame will be forced down upon the top of the cotton in the bale and thereafter secured in place by means of the hooks g, as hereinbefore pointed out.

When the turn-table B is revolved on its supports to carry the preliminary bale to the finishing side of the press and to place the empty box or chamber from which the completed bale has been removed under the baleforming mechanism, it will be evident that some little time will be lost in commencing the preliminary bale, due to the fact that the plunger of the pressure device A3 must be raised into the bale-box to place the usual follower E2 in close proximity to the baleforming surfaces E E', and in order to overcome this objectionable delay I have provided on each bale-box the hooks 7L, (shown in Fig. 2 and omitted from the othell figures to avoid confusion,) the said hooks 71. being pivoted, preferably, to the side bars g of the press and having their ends projecting into the recesses h in the side of the press. The free ends of these hooks h are sufficiently long to adapt them to support the usual follower E2 when it is in its uppermost position after the completion of the finishing compression of the bale. These hooks hare so hung to the bars g' that when disengaged from the follower E2 by the lifting thereof due to the rising plunger of the pressure device A3 they will swing outwardly sufficiently far to permit the descent of the follower thereafter without being engaged by the ends of the hooks. From this construction it will be evident that after the finished bale is removed from the finishing side of the press the follower E2 may engage with the hooks h by manually turning those hooks, with their free ends projectingwell into the bale-box,and that thereafter during the rotation of the turn-table and the laying of the few first layers of cotton upon the follower the hooks h will support and hold the follower in its position as shown in Fig. 2; but when the plunger of the pressure device A3 rises beneath the follower and lifts the same toward the bale-forming surfaces or belts E E the hooks 7L will automatically swing outward as they are relieved from the weight of the follower, and thereafter as the follower is lowered under the increasing number oflaps laid thereon the hooks h will remain in a position not to engage the follower as it descends.

'Vhile I have shown the above construction as the form preferred by me, it is evident that the various details thereof may bevaried in wide limits without departing from the spirit of myinvention-as, forinstance, under some conditions the cut-off depressor, hereinbefore described in its Various forms as mounted over the bale-forming surface E, might be omitted, and eccentrically-operative hooks g, for instance, might be sufficient to depress the cut-off sufficiently far toward the top of the bale-box to hold the cotton in the desired position away from the bale-forming surface El, so that the bale might be removed from under the said surface-and while I have shown one ot' the bale-forming surfaces as a continuous belt E it is of course evident that both of said bale-forming surfaces or belts might be formed of a series of sections or endless belts, as g5, (shown in Fig. 3,) and that a cut-off depressor might be used on cach side of the reciprocating carriage.

The operation of my device may be briefly outlined as follows: The parts being in position as shown in Fig. 2, the carriage C is re- IOT) ICS

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f C' in a light liuffy mass and then formed into a lap and given a drawing action to lay the fibers substantially parallel and produce uniformity in the character of the lap. On each change of reciprocation of the carriage the fingers e engage the lap as it passes between the bale-forming surfaces or belts E E' and causes the said lap to be folded in an even turn or fold upon the previous layers, the pressure device A3 in the meantime causing any desired upward pressure against the layers of cotton as they are thus laid, and such pressure being maintained equally throughout the formation of the bale by means of the dierential balancing device hereinbefore described. VVhen the preliminary bale has thus been laid up layer upon layer and completed, it is necessary to transfer thev said preliminary bale to the finishing side of the press without relieving the bale from its baling pressure, and to this end the cut-off F is inserted between the rollers c'and the top of the Ybale and then forced against the upper layer of cotton by means of the cut-off depressor, so that said cut-off maybe engaged by the eccentrically-mounted hooks g on'each side of the bale-box. The pressure or upward tendency of the cotton being4 thus relieved from the bale-forming surfaces E E and being held in such position by the cut-off, it is readily seen that the turn-table may be moved to transfer the bale to the finishing side of lthe press, or, if desired, the preliminary bale thus formed may be removedvfrom thepress and at a subsequenttime subjected tothe finishing compression. i s

By the'terms bale-forming mechanism or preliminary-bale-forming mechanism I .mean any formof mechanism that will be operative in the formation of what I here term thesquarebale, and by the term cut-off as used inthe specification and claims I mean any character of ,device which is adaptedto be placed over the top of the bale to hold the cotton in position as the bale is moved from under the bale-forming mechanism. s Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

l. In a cotton-press, the combination of bale-forming mechanism, devices for acting upon the top. layers of vcotton to depress the same after the formation of the bale, and meansfor holding the top layers of cotton in such depressed positionas the bale is transferred from thebale-forming mechanism.

2. In a cotton-press, the combination ofa preliminary-bale-formin g mechanism,a nishing mechanism, devices for acting upon the top of thelbale to depress the same after thel formation, of thejlatter, and means forLhold--y ing'the top ofthebale in such depressed po-j sition as the bale istransferred from the pre# liminary-bale-forming mechanism to the finishing mechanism.

3. In a cotton-press, the combination of a bale-forming mechanism, means adapted to be inserted between the bale-forming mechanism and top of the bale after the formation of the latter for holding the cotton in position in the bale, and a depressor for forcing said means uponv the top of the bale prior to removal from the press.

4. In a cotton-press, the combination of a bale-forming mechanism, means adapted to be inserted between the bale-forming mechanism and top of the bale after the formation of the latter for holding the cotton in position in the bale, a depressor for forcing said means upon the top of the baleprior to removal from the press, anddevices for holding said means in depressed position as the bale is moved from the baling mechanism. Y n

.V In a cotton-press, the combination of a preliminary-bale-forming mechanism,'afinishy ing mechanism, and means adapted for insertion between the preliminary-bale-forming mechanism and the top vof the bale after the formation ofthe latter for holdingthe layers of cotton inposition as the bale is transferred from under the preliminary-bale-forming mechanism, and devices for depressing said means upon the top layers of cotton prior to the removal ofthe bale from-the press.

6. In a cotton-press, the combination of a bale-forming mechanism for laying cotton layer upon layer in the formation of a bale and maintaining the same under compression vduring the formation thereof, devices operative upon the top of the bale to depress the same after the formation ofthe bale, and means for holding the top of the bale in such depressed position as the bale is transferred from the bale-forming mechanism.

V7. Ina cotton-press, the combination of a traveling carriage, two series of rollers mounted thereon to travel therewith, an endless belt or apron passing around each series of rollers to form a hopper or receptacle for cotton and feedthe same between them, aset of rollers mounted on saidcarriage below the said belts or aprons and a second set of rollers mounted below said first-mentioned set, and means for drivingthe secondset of rollers at an increased speed'to draw out the fibers of the lap. i

' 8. In a cotton-press, the combination with a preliminarybale-forming'mechanism, a finishing mechanism, means adapted to be inserted between the preliminary-bale-fo'rming mechanism and top ofthe bale after the formation of the latter for holding the cotton in proper position in the bale as the latterjis transferred vfrom the preliminary-bale-formas specified.

n.9. Ina cotton-pressfthe combination with' a preliminary-bale-forming mechanism, a iin-A ishing mechanism, means adapted to be in sertcd between the preliminary-bale-forming mechanism and top of the bale after the formation of the latter for holding the cotton in proper position in the bale as the latter is transferred from the preliminarybale-forming to the finishing mechanism, and devices for forcing said means against the top of the bale after the said means have been inserted as specified, and instrumentalities for maintaining the said means in position on the bale as it is transferred from one mechanism to the other.

10. In a cotton-press, the combination of a baling box or chamber, a hopper, means for reciprocating one of said parts with respect to the other to lay layers of cotton upon each other in the formation of a bale, a pressure device to maintain pressure upon the cotton as it is laid layer upon layer, devices for acting upon the top layers of cotton to depress the same after the formation of the bale, and means for holding the top layers of cotton in such depressed position as thebale is removed from the press. l

1l. In a cotton-press, the combination of a baling box or chamber and a lap-forming mechanism, means to move one of said parts with respect to the other to lay the lap layer upon layer in the formation of a bale, pressure devices for exerting pressure upon the bale as it is formed, belts for opposing the pressure devices, a cut-off adapted to be inserted over the top of the bale after the formation thereof and means passing through suitable passages in one of said belts for forcing the cut-off upon the top of the bale.

12. In a cotton-press, a' preliminary-baleforming mechanism comprising two series of rollers to feed a lap of cotton layer upon layer in the formation of a bale, a pressure device for maintaining the layers of cotton pressed against said belts as the bale is being formed, in combination with a cut-off adapted to be inserted over the top of the bale after the formation thereof, means passing through suitable passages in one of said belts for forcing the cut-off upon the top of the bale and devices for maintaining the cut-off in position on the bale as the latter is removed from the press.

13. In a cotton-press, the combination of a hopper, a series of rollers at each side thereof, a plurality of belts carried by one of said series of rollers with a space between them, a cut-olf, and a cut-off depressor movable in the space between the belts.

14. In a cotton-press, the combination of a hopper, a series of rollers at each side thereof, a belt carried by one of the said series of rollers, a plurality of belts carried by the other series of rollers with a space between them, a cut-off adapted to be inserted between the said plurality of belts, and a cut-off depressor movable in the space between the belts.

15. In a cotton-press, the combination of a hopper, a series of rollers adjacent each side thereof, a plurality of belts carried by one of said series of rollers with a space between them, and a cut-off depressor comprising handle-bars, and push-bars operable therefrom, said push-bars passing between said belts, and a cut-off adapted to bc inserted in the space between the belts and be engaged by the push-bars.

16. In a cotton-press, the combination of a carriage,a hopper mounted thereon and adapted to receive loose cotton direct from a gin or suitable source of supply, series of rollers and bale-forming surfaces mounted on said carriage, means for reciprocating said carriage to lay the cotton layer upon layer in the formation of a bale, the bale-forming surface on one of said series of rollers consisting of several parts spaced apart, a cut-off adapted to be inserted in the spaces between the parts of said bale-forming surface, and a cut-off deprcssor operable between said parts upon the cut-off.

17. In a cotton-press, the combination of a hopper, a series ot' rollers adjacent each side thereof carrying bale-forming surfaces, the bale-forming surface on one of said series of rollers comprising a plurality of separated parts, a cut-off depressor operable between the said parts of the bale-forming surface, a cut-off adapted to be inserted in the space between said parts and to be engaged by the cut-off depressor, and retaining devices for holding the cut-off in place upon the top of the bale.

1S. In a cotton-press, the combination of a hopper, a series of rollers adjacent each side thereof carrying bale-forming surfaces, lthe bale-forming surface on one of said series of rollers comprising a plurality of separated parts, a cut-off depressor operable between the said parts of the bale-forming surface, a cut-off adapted to be inserted in the space between said parts and having upturned ends and adapted to be engaged by the cut-olf depressor, and retaining devices for holding the cut-off in place upon the top of the bale.

19. A cut-off for holding the cotton in a cotton-bale as the latter is removed from the baleforming Inechanism, said cut-off comprising a series of parallel bars adapted to be placed above the bale after the formation of the latter, said parallel bars being free at one end, and a cross -piece connecting said parallel bars at the opposite end.

20. A cut-off for holding the cotton in a cotton-bale comprising a series of parallel bars, a cross-piece for connecting the bars at one end thereof, said bars being free at their opposite ends, in combination with a bale box or chamber and means carried by said box or chamber for engagement with said cut-olf.

21. A eut-off for holding the cotton in a cotton-bale comprising a series of parallel bars, a cross-piece for connecting the bars at one end thereof, in combination with a bale box or chamber, hooks carried by said box or chamber for engagement with the cut-off,

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and means for forcing said hooks and the en- Y gaged cut-o toward the top of the balebox or chamber.

2.2. In a cotton-press, a bale-forming mechanism comprising a balebox and means for laying the cottonlayer upon' layer in said box to form a square bale, and pressure devices maintaining the layers of cotton under compression as the bale is being formed, said devices comprising a plunger movable within the bale-box in combination with a differential balancing device having gearing connection With said plunger for maintaining the pressure exerted Vby the plunger on the layers of cotton in the bale-box uniform and equal throughout the formation of the bale.

23. In a cotton-press, the combination of apreliminary-bale-forming mechanism comprising devices for supporting the bale as it is formed, bale-forming surfaces, means for moving one of said parts with relation to the other to lay the cotton in layers and startingingers secured to the bale-forming surface to start the lap in the backward fold at the commencement of each movement.

24.' In a cotton-press, a bale box or chamber, a traveling carriage, a hopper, a series of rollers and belts mounted o n said carriage,

means for moving the carriage back and forth over the bale box or chamber, and startingngers secured to the said belts.

25. In a cotton-press, the combinationof bale-forming mechanism, means for maintaining the bale under desired compression as the cotton is laid layer upon layer', a'follower, and automatically-engaging hooks for holding the follower in position during the laying of some of the preliminarylayers and for them to automatically release said follower as the compression means act to compress the layers of cotton. A y

26; In a cotton-press, the combination of bale-forming mechanism comprising means for laying the cotton layer upon layer, a pressure device for maintaining pressure on the bale as it is formed, a follower and automatically-disengaging hooks for holding the follower in position during the formation'of the first part of the bale and for automatically releasing the follower as the pressure device operates to apply pressure to the bale.

ABNER D. THOMAS. 

